Dhaka, June 23 (UNB) - Saaho is being touted as the biggest action film of Indian cinema, starring Prabhas in the lead, who rose to fame for portrayal of his character Baahubali in the SS Rajamouli film of the same name. While Prabhas leads the film, Saaho stars many Bollywood personalities who would be seen playing pivotal roles. Hindi film actor Neil Nitin Mukesh plays an anti-hero in Saaho. In a recent interview, Neil said that he had said yes to the project even before Baahubali (first chapter) had released, reports The Indian Express.

“From the day I heard the script, I knew that it is going to be a phenomenal film. The first part of Baahubali had not even released then. But I had seen Prabhas sir’s work from before and I knew what a brilliant actor he was,” Neil said in a report by Asian Age.

He added that what makes Saaho such an anticipated film is the fact that the film has a very strong technical team.

“We have some fabulous technicians working on this film. R. Madhie sir, Sabu Cyril sir, director Sujeet is such a young talent. We have UV Creations and there is Kenny Bates and other technicians who have flown in from all across the world to execute this mammoth action thriller. I am very grateful to be a part of one of the biggest action films to be made out of India,” Neil concluded.

Apart from Neil, Saaho will see Shraddha Kapoor, Chunkey Panday, Jackie Shroff, Vennela Kishore, Arun Vijay, Mahesh Manjrekar, Mandira Bedi among others playing pivotal characters.

The film, directed by Sujeeth, will release on August 15.

Dhaka, June 23 (UNB) - Actor Rani Mukerji, who made her comeback with Hichki in 2018, is shooting for the sequel of her action-drama Mardaani, which released in 2014. Recently, the actor said in an interview that the sequel will be ‘very real, very alarming to audiences and make them aware of what’s happening in and around our lives,’ reports The Indian Express.

“In Hichki, they (audience) came to know about the symptoms of Tourette’s which not many people knew in India. With Mardaani we got to tell people how the menace of child trafficking exists in our lives even though we don’t want to see it but it is rampant around us. In Mardaani 2, we will again tackle a subject that will be shocking; it will show something very real, very alarming to audiences and make them aware of what’s happening in and around our lives,” she said in a report of ANI.

Mardaani 2 marks the directorial debut of Gopi Puthran, the writer of the first film. The release date of the film is yet to be announced.

On the other hand, Rani is basking in the success of Hichki, which did a good business in China.

“They understood each and every emotion of the film. They knew about the film, they had seen the film so there was a lot of positivity everywhere I went. It was surprising because I knew that Indian films are popular but to what degree, I found it when I went there,” Rani told PTI.

Dhaka, June 23 (UNB) - After Zero’s failure at the box office, there were rumours that Shah Rukh Khan will take over the silver screens once again with Rakesh Sharma’s biopic Saare Jahaan Se Accha. Later, he was also rumoured to have met Sanjay Leela Bhansali for his directorial project based on the life of Sahir Ludhianvi. But all the reports were put to rest by the man himself, reports The Indian Express. 

“I have no film with me right now. I am not working on any film. Usually what happens is when your one film is coming to an end, you begin work on your next film and I get involved within 3-4 months. But this time I am just not feeling like…My heart doesn’t allow me to..I just felt that I should rather take time out, watch films, listen to stories and read more books,” Shah Rukh told Filmfare.

“Even my kids are in their college stage…my daughter is going to college and my son is about to finish his studies. So I just want to spend more time with my family,” the actor added.

However, Shah Rukh is keeping himself busy with his production ventures. He is producing Bard of Blood for Netflix. Recently, he announced that he would be dubbing for Mufasa while his son Aryan Khan will be voicing Simba in Disney’s upcoming live-action version of The Lion King.

Dhaka, June 23 (UNB) - Heartbeat actor William Simons, who charmed Sunday evening viewers for nearly two decades as easygoing veteran PC Alf Ventress, has died aged 79, reports BBC.

Welsh-born Simons played the character in all 18 series of the 1960s-set show.

He also appeared in Coronation Street, Emmerdale, Crown Court and Last of the Summer Wine during his 60-year career.

His agent said: "He was a wonderful, kind, warm, witty, lovely human being and anyone who ever worked with him or knew him will be devastated."

Jason Durr, who appeared alongside Simons in Heartbeat paid tribute to the "lovely man".

Simons, who was born in Swansea, was already 51 when he landed the biggest role of his career, playing Alf Ventress when Heartbeat first landed on TV screens in 1992 as a prime-time vehicle for former EastEnders star and chart-topping singer Nick Berry.

Berry played a young London constable who moved north with his family and encountered Ventress as one of the colleagues who helped him build a new life while fighting crime in a rural setting.

The show, set in the fictional Yorkshire villages of Ashfordly and Aidensfield, attracted more than 13 million viewers and saw guest appearances by Gary Barlow, Charlotte Church, Lulu, and David Dickinson - and Yorkshire's legendary cricket umpire Dickie Bird.

Simons was very popular with viewers and his character continued to appear in the show as a civilian even after he retired from the force.

And when ITV launched a spin-off show called The Royal, he was asked to play Ventress in six episodes.

According to the Yorkshire Post, Simons enjoyed his role in Heartbeat so much that he bought a house in the village of Goathland, where much of the show's filming took place.

But he sold it 14 years later, explaining in an interview with the Daily Express that Goathland had become so popular with tourists drawn by the Heartbeat factor that "it was impossible to step outside without being recognised".

Changing Faces

As a teenage actor, Simons had suffered so badly from acne that he gave up his acting career for a few years and instead got a job as a stage manager.

So as soon as he became a major star on Heartbeat, he became a patron for the Changing Faces charity, which supports people with facial disfigurements.

Heartbeat was based on the Constable series of novels written by ex-policeman Peter N Walker, under the pseudonym Nicholas Rhea.

In an interview before his death in 2017, Walker said Simons had "created a totally believable character, just as I imagined him".

Dhaka, Jun 23 (UNB) - After Zero’s failure at the box office, there were rumours that Shah Rukh Khan will take over the silver screens once again with Rakesh Sharma’s biopic Saare Jahaan Se Accha. Later, he was also rumoured to have met Sanjay Leela Bhansali for his directorial project based on the life of Sahir Ludhianvi. But all the reports were put to rest by the man himself, reports the Indian Express. 

“I have no film with me right now. I am not working on any film. Usually what happens is when your one film is coming to an end, you begin work on your next film and I get involved within 3-4 months. But this time I am just not feeling like…My heart doesn’t allow me to..I just felt that I should rather take time out, watch films, listen to stories and read more books,” Shah Rukh told Filmfare.

“Even my kids are in their college stage…my daughter is going to college and my son is about to finish his studies. So I just want to spend more time with my family,” the actor added.

However, Shah Rukh is keeping himself busy with his production ventures. He is producing Bard of Blood for Netflix. Recently, he announced that he would be dubbing for Mufasa while his son Aryan Khan will be voicing Simba in Disney’s upcoming live-action version of The Lion King.